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AT&T plans 100 LTE markets by year’s end, doubling footprint

AT&T announced the expansion of its 4G LTE coverage into nine new markets today, along with plans to expand into at least 40 more markets by the end of 2012. The company’s LTE coverage is now live in 60 markets, so the new plans mean AT&T will be in over 100 total markets by year’s end, roughly doubling its prior footprint. While this is a large expansion for AT&T, the company still trails Verizon by a wide margin — Verizon 4G LTE is currently available in 371 markets. Both companies provide LTE service for the third-generation iPad, and are expected to offer LTE for the next-generation iPhone as well.

AT&T’s website notes that its 4G LTE deployment “will largely be complete by year-end 2013,” though it’s unclear how many total markets that might amount to in the end. The new markets added today were: Anchorage, Alaska; Bakersfield, Calif.; Bridgeport, Conn.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Modesto, Calif.; North Montgomery County, Md.; Northern New Jersey; Omaha, Neb; and Syracuse, N.Y.